Many large computational systems are implemented as a number of rack-mounted appliances installed in an equipment rack. For example, the rack-mounted appliances can include computer servers, power supplies, storage libraries, and/or other computational devices. Some such systems are sold as pre-integrated, or “engineered,” systems, which can provide customers with an effectively pre-fabricated equipment rack. The pre-integrated rack can be filled, or partially filled, with rack-mounted appliances of particular types designed to perform certain functions, meet certain specifications, etc. The pre-integration can reduce the cost and complexity of information technology infrastructures, while increasing productivity and performance.
Pre-integrated systems are often configured at a fabrication facility (e.g., a factory), and are reconfigured, when deployed to a customer facility, to integrate with the customer's computational environment. Each configuration (e.g., and with any subsequent reconfigurations, such as when appliances are added, removed, moved, etc.), traditionally involves a human operator entering data into a host system or the like to indicate which appliances are installed, physical locators for the appliances (e.g., where each appliance is installed in the equipment rack), logical locators for the appliances (e.g., an Internet Protocol (IP) address and host name for each appliance), etc. Human configuration of the pre-integrated systems can be time-consuming, error-prone, and/or otherwise undesirable.